Breaking those Boundaries
by lovehy
Summary: HY story set sometime after "Killer Date." Horatio learns his brother is not actually dead and struggles whether or not he should tell the woman he loves that her husband is alive. Chapter 3 added!
1. Chapter 1

Horatio sat outside this all too familiar house. The last time he has been inside was when Ray Jr. called about his mom and Rick's escalating fight.

Ever since then, Yelina and him had been distant. No more shared smiles or lighthearted banter that seemed to make his day bearable. Whenever they did have a conversation, it was about work. Horatio yearned for those days when they were close. He was as close as he could possibly be to his brother's wife, without overstepping his own boundaries.

He sat in his hummer waiting. Waiting to find the courage inside of him to tell his sister-in-law that there is a possibility that Raymond was alive. The news was still so fresh to him. He hasn't even said it out loud yet, so how can he be ready for this? He made up his mind that he had to tell her; there was no other way. He had hurt her before by keeping secrets and back then vowed to never be the source of her pain again. The news would crush her, but he would be there to pick up the pieces.

Horatio took a deep breath as he stepped out of the hummer. He coolly put his sunglasses on, even thought the sun was slowly fading into the horizon. As he made his way to the front door he mentally kicked himself for not planning on what to say. He reached the door and took another deep breath. His hand formed a fist and landed three hard knocks on the wooden door. There was no turning back now.

He stood at her door, hands on his hips, waiting. It was moments before she opened the door, but to him it felt like an eternity. When the door had fully opened and he saw her, his palms began to sweat and his heart raced. There she was, the woman of his dreams. She was the one that got away, although he never really had her.

Yelina stood there completely surprised to see who was on her doorstep. She was wearing short jeans shorts with a green tank top for it was her day off. Horatio was taken aback by this. It had been so long since he had seen her in anything but work attire. She looked even more stunning. As these thoughts entered his head, he quickly shook them out. That was not what he was there for. He tried to speak, but words had escaped him.

She finally broke the silence, "Horatio?"

He broke his stare from her and removed his sun glasses. He turned his head towards his feet and let out a soft "Hey."

Worry spread throughout her face as she said "Is everything ok?"

"Um…yes," he responded although his mind screamed otherwise. He has learned quite well not to say what was on his mind in front of Yelina.

She motioned him inside and proceeded to say "Ray Jr. is upstairs asleep."

He walked in past her, catching the smell of her lilac scented hair. His heart beat a little faster as he turned around to look as she closed the door.

"I…I actually came to see you," Horatio softly said trying to calm his heart.

A silence fell before them, but was broken when Yelina said "Oh ok."

His arrival was a shock to her although not unwelcome. He had left a void in her life, and she just missed him. Maybe it was her fault for pushing him away during the whole Rick ordeal, but what about before that? She had reached out to him a countless number of times and always been rejected. She was lonely and tired of being just a sister-in-law, so she fell for Rick. She was not perfect she needed a man in her life. She knew which man she wanted to fill that role, but it seems he didn't want the part. Was he finally there to talk about more than work or Ray Jr.? Maybe she just didn't want to feel the pain of rejection again or maybe it was her stubbornness, but she was determined not to make the first move. She would have never guessed those three little words that came out of his mouth.

"It's about Raymond," Horatio said as he broke their eye contact and looked down at the folded sunglasses in his hand.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath in. He could tell she was obviously disappointed that their first non related work conversation had to be about him. His eyes looked up and met hers as she began to speak.

"Horatio….we have been through this."

"I know, but it's just he…" She cut him short before he could finish his thought. With each increasing moment, she became more agitated. She crossed her arms to convey this to him.

"Stop trying to open old wounds. It has taken all I have to get past his death, and I don't want to go back there. Horatio, your brother is gone. Accept it."

"My brother, but your husband," Horatio slipped out. He immediately regretted saying that when he saw the look of disappointment on her face.

She broke eye contact looking around for anything to focus on. Anything, but him. She was still his brother's wife and she saw no way he could ever get past that.

"I don't want to go through this with you tonight or ever," Yelina said while her tone hardened.

Her words hurt him, but he knew that was nothing compared to how he had hurt her. He didn't understand why he couldn't just tell her how he actually felt. Maybe it was because he didn't know he felt, after all it was his brother's wife standing before him. He had always ignored the feelings coming from his heart, and just listened to logic. He trusted logic and knew it would never steer him wrong, but it would also never make him happy. He felt her slipping farther and farther away. He knew what she wanted to hear from him, but he couldn't bring himself to say it. Why couldn't he? Horatio forced those thoughts out of his head and returned to his conversation with Yelina.

She was standing at arms lengths from him, but it seemed like she was miles away. No turning back now, as he continued his quest to tell her about her husband.

"It's just that Raymond…."

"Stop," she interrupted yet again. "I can't do _this_ anymore."

She walked past him resting her hand on the back of her couch with her back towards him. She closed her eyes, holding back tears, waiting for him to speak. She was determined to be like him and keep her emotions locked in, even though his presence around her made it impossible to do.

"Do what?" Horatio asked instinctively taking a step forward. He couldn't help, but to be drawn to her. He had that feeling since the first day they met. He was meant to be close to her.

Still having her back towards him and fighting off the tears, she hung her head and responded "_This_, Horatio."

He knew exactly what she was talking about, but played dumb. Taking another step towards, her he said "and what exactly is that?"

She could feel him getting closer. His breath grazed the back of her neck as chills ran down her spine. A few tears escaped her eyes, but she quickly wiped them hoping he didn't see. "Whatever this is between us. I'm done, I'm putting up my own boundaries," she said.

Her words stung. He stood silently as he put his sunglasses in his jacket pocket and pulled out a handkerchief. He knew once he took another step, he would be crossing the lines he had drawn. He didn't care. Listening to logic hadn't gotten him very far, and he was ready to follow what his heart had been telling him all along. He took another step towards her and reached his hand out to touch the back of her upper arm, motioning for her to turn around.

Before he could think about what was happening, she was turned, facing him, the distance between them was gone. He looked into her wet eyes, and raised his handkerchief to dry her cheeks. She grabbed his wrist that held the handkerchief as she muttered "I'm fine."

Her touch made his heart beat louder and his mind went blank. He just gave her smile and continued to stare into her eyes. He lowered his hand from her face and realized she was still holding his wrist. Maybe she actually didn't want him to stop. He knew what she wanted.

Reality had now completely escaped him as he thought this moment would only happen in his dreams.

He slowly leaned into her trying to judge whether or not she would pull back. She stood perfectly still, and their lips finally meet. At first it was just a small peck, but then they both wanted more.

He wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her even closer. Their bodies were touching as she ran her fingers through his soft hair. Their kisses became deeper as their tongues explored the inside of each other's mouths. Right now he wasn't thinking of her as his sister-in-law; she wasn't married to his brother, right now in this moment she was with him. Nothing else mattered. He didn't want to be anywhere, but right here. With her.

Just a few minutes ago she was telling him it was over, and now she couldn't get enough. Their emotions got the best of them and now they were completely taking over. And she didn't want it any other way.

She took her hands from his hair and slowly took his jacket off. He had to remove his hands from her body, but their lips where still connected. After the jacket had successfully been removed and tossed on the floor, she put her hands around his neck and he placed one hand under the back of her shirt to touch the small of her back and the other between her shoulder blades.

He slowly started walking over to the couch directing her body with his arms. He turned and tenderly laid her down. He hovered over her moving his lips from hers to her neck. She let out a sigh and he quickly stopped, looking up at her. A piece of reality came back to him as he said "You ok?" Her response was short "Yes." He smiled and resumed kissing her neck then back to her lips.

She reached for the buttons of his shirt and slowly unbuttoned each one. His senses were overloaded by what was happening and what was about to happen. She finally got to the last button, and his chest was now exposed. She ran her hands along his chest as she slowly pushed him up. They momentarily stopped kissing as she reached for the bottom of her tank top. Staring into her eyes, Horatio used his hands to help her pull it over her head. Her hair cascaded down on her bare back and shoulders. He resumed kissing her, from her lips down to her navel and back again. Her hands moved from his chest down to the button of his pants. She unbuttoned the single button and was working on the zipper, when he suddenly stopped again.

"Are you sure about this?" he asked worried she would say no.

She didn't say anything at all and just lifted her head a bit to kiss him again. He got the answer he was hoping for.


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: I made Ray Jr a bit younger than he actually is because I love the H/Ray Jr connection at that age. Also, thank you Mtwapa and YelinaS.Caine (love your name!) for the reviews. It really does mean a lot to me! **

**Disclaimer: No, I do not own anything!**

* * *

All of a sudden reality came crashing back to them as they heard Ray Jr. walking down the stairs saying "Mom?" Horatio quickly sat up, breaking their kiss, and buttoned a few buttons on his shirt and his pants while Yelina searched for her tank top. Luckily, it took the sleepy boy awhile to get down the stairs, and she successfully located her shirt and pulled it back over her head. Horatio sat on the edge on the couch with his arms on his knees while Yelina stood up to go to the boy at the bottom of the stairs.

"Honey, what's wrong?" she asked the boy.

"I couldn't sleep…. and I thought I heard voices early."

Horatio looked over at the mother and her child wishing with everything he had that they were his own. His temporary weakness may have just cost him everything. He tore down those boundaries, and there was no going back. It took him so long to build them up, and with just one kiss, they were demolished. In a way, he was relieved he no longer had to hide behind them, but now he had no protection from her.

The boy spotted Horatio and shouted "Uncle Horatio!" Ray Jr. ran over and sat on the couch where he had no idea what his uncle and mom were just about to do.

Horatio still rested his arms on his knees as he turned his head to look at his nephew. "Hey buddy why aren't you in bed?"

"It's too early to sleep," The boy responded.

"Well how about I take you upstairs and tuck you in? Will that help?" Horatio said smiling at the boy.

"Yes!" He said as he stood up waiting to lead Horatio to his room.

"I will be up there in a minute, partner."

The little boy was so excited he took off right up the stairs, eagerly waiting for his uncle.

Yelina still stood at the bottom of the steps watching her son interact with his uncle, like he would do a father. She wondered if Raymond would have been half the father figure that Horatio is now. She didn't want to think about Raymond right now. She closed her eyes and pushed him from her memory. Her mind was now full of questions about what had almost taken place between them. She walked over to the couch and sat down next to Horatio, rubbing his back.

"I wouldn't do that," he said tilting his head to look over at her. She understood and let out a little giggle. "Ok." She smiled at him as she took her hand of his back and lent back against the couch.

He had no idea what to say to her. His mind was flooded with questions and answers, but nothing came out of his mouth. After a few minutes in silence he stood up and buttoned the rest of his buttons. "I'll be back," He said.

"I'll be waiting," she responded giving him a slight smile.

She watched as he walked up the stairs towards her son's bedroom. Horatio entered the boy's room and he was already in his bed with his favorite book in hand.

The boy just smiled as Horatio took the book from his hands and sat on the edge of the bed. After he was finished reading, the boy was drifting to sleep. Horatio stood up and gave a boy a kiss on his forehead. Guilt ran through him as he watched his brother's son lay there. Why did Raymond have to "die" and leave his family alone in this world? And if he was actually alive, why would he want to be separated from them for all this time? Didn't he want to come home to Yelina every night and watch Ray Jr. grow into a teenager? How could he ever cheat on her? There was no woman that could compare to Yelina, no matter how hard Horatio had tried to think otherwise. What in the hell was his brother thinking? The one thing in the world Horatio had wanted the most, his brother walked away from. He could never understand him. If only he had met her first. If only.

He patted the small boy on his head and whispered "I love you." He was almost out the door when he heard the boy talk.

"Uncle H?" the boy softly said.

"Yes, partner? What is it?" Horatio responded, slowly turning around to see the boy open his eyes.

"You won't hurt mommy will you?" the boy asked timidly.

"Of course not….get some sleep little man."

Just like that the boy was sound asleep and Horatio silently exited the room and closed the door. Horatio's mind wandered to what just happened ten minutes ago. He couldn't even wrap his head around what had almost happened and what had. Part him felt enormously guilty, and another part of him wished Ray Jr. didn't interrupt. He took a deep breath and made his way down the stairs.

He spotted Yelina still sitting on the couch, obviously deep in thought. He wondered what she was thinking about, but then again, he already knew.

He walked over and sat down next to her on that couch. She smiled as she turned to look at him and he just put his arm around her shoulders. She leaned her head to rest on his shoulder and she closed her eyes. He took her hand and intertwined their fingers. She didn't want to talk right now; she just wanted to be close to him. She was finally in and there was nothing that could force her back out and she wanted him to know that.

Horatio softly rubbed her shoulder with his fingertips as she drifted asleep. He wanted to say something to her, but he didn't want to disrupt this perfect moment. He knew they should talk about what had happened, but just not right now. Right now, nothing mattered except that she was in his arms and they were together. She was happy, and he was the last person that was going to destroy that.

He could feel his eye lids becoming heavier and heavier. Sleep was about to take him over, as it already did her. He didn't want to wake Yelina, but he also didn't want to intrude by falling asleep on her couch. He slowly removed his arm from her shoulder and gently laid her down on the couch. He stood up and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "I love you," he whispered knowing she couldn't hear.

He picked his jacket off of the floor where Yelina had tossed it, and silently walked out of her home.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: **Thanks again YelinaS.Caine and Mtwapa for reviewing, you guys are wonderful! Sorry this has taken me forever to update, but my muse just kinda died on me for awhile. It's not as good as the other chapters, but don't worry this is just a build up chapter for the next one and I promise it will be much better! Thanks again for reading...

**Disclaimer: **I don't own it.

* * *

Horatio opened his eyes and glanced over at the clock. The bright lights read 5:30. He rubbed his tired eyes as he swung his legs over the side of the bed. He had only slept a total of three hours and his body was aching for more. All night he tossed and turned as memories of his brother haunted him in his dreams. He was alive and he needed to tell Yelina, and in the process, break her heart. 

Horatio knew he had to tell her, he just didn't know how. How do you tell someone that their husband has led them to believe he was dead? It seems Horatio's purpose in life is to clean up or take responsibility for his little brother's mistakes. But he didn't want to do it anymore; he wanted to live his own life. He wanted to be happy.

And for him, being happy could only come by being with Yelina.

Horatio stood up and made his way to the bathroom. He undressed and stepped into the shower. The hot water felt good as it pelted his back. He closed his eyes tightly and inhaled the hot steam. Memories of the night before flooded his mind. He could remember every single detail. The way her skin felt so soft underneath his finger tips or how her long curls cascaded down her shoulders. He loved the way she kissed him. Sure he has kissed some wonderful women before, but none of them compare to Yelina. It was firm, yet so passionate and inviting. It felt so right.

He opened his eyes and shut off those memories.

Once he had completed his morning routine, he climbed into his Hummer and made his way to the lab. It was the one place where he could totally lose himself. He was able to forget about his problems and focus on the victims. Many people thought he was a slave to his work, but it just provided him with an escape. It was an escape from going home to a lonely house with no wife or children to love him.

* * *

Yelina woke up still laying the way Horatio had left her. She opened her eyes and scanned the surroundings.

"Horatio," she thought as she quickly sat up.

At first, she thought maybe it was all a dream. His kiss and touch were way too vivid in her mind for it to not be real. She wondered why and when he had left. She wished he would have stayed, but at the same time understood that taking the first step past those boundaries was a big deal for him.

She stood up and made her way up the stairs to wake her son for school. She was just finishing getting ready when Ray Jr. ran down the stairs.

"Where's Uncle H?" the boy said full of excitement.

"Well honey, he is at his own house," the mom responded.

"Oh. I thought you were gonna have a sleep over."

Yelina softly laughed. "No…not yet."

"Well when can he come over again? He's great at reading my books."

Yelina smiled as she sensed the deep affection this boy had for his uncle. "I'll talk to him today and ask him. Now you better eat your cereal or you will be late."

"Sweet!" the little boy screamed.

After Ray Jr. had finished his breakfast, Yelina had ushered him into her car and drove off.

* * *

Horatio walked into his office and decided to catch up on some paper work. No calls from dispatch had come in yet, so he had nothing else to do. His mind wandered to Yelina again, and he decided he should call her.

He unclipped his phone from his belt and flipped it open. He dialed the familiar number, but just held the phone in his hand. He wasn't sure what he was going to say to her, but he knew he wanted to hear her voice. He was actually feeling nervous now, very rare for the great Horatio Caine. He can stand at gun point with a suspect and not feel a thing, but just thinking of this woman could make his stomach do somersaults.

His thumb hovered over the talk button, and just when he was about to apply pressure, a message from dispatch came through. Horatio gave out a sigh as he stood up and replaced the phone on his belt.

"Duty calls," he muttered to himself as he made his way back to the Hummer.


End file.
